Why is my quote over £100 higher than the estimate on the MSE website?

QrizB

dmarcel said:

QrizB said:

Were the prices higher?

Or were the prices the same but the monthly DD higher?

Both the direct debit and the yearly estimate were higher. Please see the figures below:

Provider (Plan)	MSE Prices (£/mth → £/yr)	Email Quote (£/mth → £/yr)
Home (Fair Variable Elec)	£87 → £1,045	£99.54 → £1,194.45
Outfox (Fix'd Elec Jul25 12M v5.0)	£90 → £1,086	£105.64 → £1,267.72
Fuse (July 2025 Fixed (15m) V2)	£93 → £1,118	£95.11 → £1,141.32

The yearly quotes were higher by £150, £182, and £23 respectively.

That's not the prices, though.

There will be a price for energy (pence per kWh) and a standing charge (pence per day). Of those are the same on the MSE site and in the energy supplier's quote, the price is accurate.

The supplier sets the monthly DD to manage your account balance through the year. It won't necessarily be 1/12th of your estimated annual spend. Octopus for example require that you keep your account in credit at all times, and so will set the DD higher so you have enough credit on your account going into winter.

dmarcel

QrizB said:

That's not the prices, though.

There will be a price for energy (pence per kWh) and a standing charge (pence per day). Of those are the same on the MSE site and in the energy supplier's quote, the price is accurate.

The supplier sets the monthly DD to manage your account balance through the year. It won't necessarily be 1/12th of your estimated annual spend. Octopus for example require that you keep your account in credit at all times, and so will set the DD higher so you have enough credit on your account going into winter.

As you can see in the screenshots below, the unit rate and standing charge are identical on both the MSE website and the Home Energy site, but the monthly and yearly estimates are different. That’s my dilemma!

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Same with the other two providers I mentioned before.

QrizB

I still don't see how this is a dilemma.

When paying by fixed monthly direct debit, the monthly payment is not a "cost" or a "bill", it's a payment on account.

From that account balance, your supplier deducts money to pay your monthly bill. Some months this will be more than your monthly DD, other months it will be less.

Every 6-12 months your supplier will review your usage and account balance, and will adjust your DD up or down as necessary.

Wham you come to leave your supplier, any account credit will be refunded.

If you don't want to pay a fixed monthly DD, many (not all) suppliers will let you pay by variable monthly DD where your DD exactly matches your bill for the month.

singhini

@dmarcel
Could the difference in the £87 and the £99 being quoted be because the suppliers are not using a like-for-like time period i.e. estimated £87 is based on say 28 days and £99 is based on 31 days ? 

Just a thought

dmarcel

singhini said:

@dmarcel
Could the difference in the £87 and the £99 being quoted be because the suppliers are not using a like-for-like time period i.e. estimated £87 is based on say 28 days and £99 is based on 31 days ? 

Just a thought

Good thought, thank you. But I made my own estimation based on 365 days of standing charge plus the usage times the unit rate and I get the same average as MSE website: £87.19. So it cannot be.

HillStreetBlues

Under the MSE price (year £1045) it has the WHD, currently £150.  If you take the WHD from home energy price (year £1194.45)  the figures (nearly) match.

Qyburn

dmarcel said:

As you can see in the screenshots below, the unit rate and standing charge are identical on both the MSE website and the Home Energy site, but the monthly and yearly estimates are different. 

What annual figure do you get if you work it out yourself?

singhini

HillStreetBlues said:

Under the MSE price (year £1045) it has the WHD, currently £150.  If you take the WHD from home energy price (year £1194.45)  the figures (nearly) match.

i think you may well have nailed it 

QrizB

Qyburn said:

What annual figure do you get if you work it out yourself?

OP has answered that question:

dmarcel said:

Good thought, thank you. But I made my own estimation based on 365 days of standing charge plus the usage times the unit rate and I get the same average as MSE website: £87.19. So it cannot be.

£87.19 a month, £1046.28 a year.

singhini said:

HillStreetBlues said:

Under the MSE price (year £1045) it has the WHD, currently £150.  If you take the WHD from home energy price (year £1194.45)  the figures (nearly) match.

i think you may well have nailed it 

That however would not be consistent with OP's statement that the MSE price of £87 a month matches their own calculations.
I think the only reason MSE CEC mentions the WHD is because not all suppliers offer it, and if you are eligible for WHD you wouldn't generally want to switch to a non-WHD supplier.

bagand96

If the unit and standing charge prices are the same across MSE and the suppliers then that is what you will pay for your energy.

As has been explained the monthly DD is not the bill, it's just a payment to the account. The bills will be generated based on your use.

Energy suppliers set the DD based on your annual use - but keep in mind that's not an exact science. So they may be building a buffer in. Especially the Home Energy quote - their tariff is variable so it's possible the rates may rise and fall through the year. 

You'll pay for the energy you use. If that's less than the monthly DDs then you end up in credit.